Four dead babies found in home*

By Jon Hurdle

July 31, 2007 06:33am
Article from: Reuters

THE remains of four premature babies have been found hidden in garbage
bags and a blanket at a woman's home in the US state of Maryland, police
said overnight.

Christy Freeman, 37, has been charged with first- and second-degree
murder and manslaughter in connection with the death of one of the babies.

Further charges may follow, said Ocean City police spokesman Barry Neeb.

Police found the body of one baby wrapped in a blanket in Ms Freeman's
apartment on Friday after she was admitted to a local hospital with
cramps and bleeding, Mr Neeb said.

Doctors at the hospital determined that Ms Freeman had been pregnant but
not anymore, prompting police to search her apartment.

At the apartment, police also found a garbage bag hidden in a trunk in
Ms Freeman's bedroom.

Inside were three smaller plastic bags, two of which contained the
remains of two more infants, and a third contained what police said was
a placenta.

The next day, the remains of a fourth infant were found in another
garbage bag inside a Winnebago motor home parked in Ms Freeman's
driveway, according to a police statement.

A medical examiner's report on the ages of the infants and the cause of
their deaths is expected this week.

"None of them were full-term," Mr Neeb said.

Police are continuing to search Ms Freeman's home and excavate its
surroundings in an operation that also involves the FBI.

Ms Freeman has four other children who are believed to be teenagers, Mr
Neeb said.